Beacon Fell traditional Lancashire cheese

Appearance & taste

The cheese is made in the traditional cylinder shape and sold as a whole cylinder, in parts of it or in block form, each in various sizes. It is bandaged, waxed, buttered or vacuum-packed. The paste is a uniform cream colour throughout, moderately firm, smooth and silky, loose and open with a buttery feel; ripened cheese is fairly spreadable.

Young cheeses taste clean and mild, mature cheeses fairly sharp and piquant. The cheese contains at least 48 % butterfat in the dry matter and at most 48 % moisture.

Production

Beacon Fell Traditional Lancashire Cheese is made from full-fat cow’s milk from the county of Lancashire. The curd is delicate and is handled by traditional methods so that the fat does not break out or get lost with the whey; this gives the cheese its flavour and texture. The cheesemaker’s experience determines the right moment for each step. According to the specification, the long making process ensures that the cheese takes up the particular micro-organisms of each dairy, which contribute to its flavour. All stages of production take place in the area.

Origin & history

The area is the ceremonial county of Lancashire with Blackpool and Blackburn with Darwen. The specification attributes the buttery texture and softness of the cheese to the sandstone bedrock of this part of Lancashire, to soft water and lush pastures. The nearness of the coast and the Gulf Stream make for a temperate climate without strong swings in temperature, and the westerly winds bring around 1,450 mm of rain a year. This keeps pastures and fodder fresh and free of dust, and the cows get the same amount of feed all year round.

In 1179 Preston received its first royal charter for markets at which much cheese from the farms of north Lancashire was sold. According to records, “Traditional Lancashire” was first made on the farms of the Fylde north of the Ribble. Until the late 19th century production was inconsistent. Then the county council engaged Joseph Gornall of Garstang to teach the farmers a uniform method; he also wrote several books on it. A Ministry of Agriculture handbook from 1956 followed his methods, and apart from minor technical changes the cheese is still made this way today.

Before the Second World War, over 200 farms and a few dairies produced around 4,800 tonnes a year. During the war, its production was banned in favour of hard cheese, which was easier to cut into rations; by 1948 only 22 producers were left. In the 1960s and 1970s a white, acidic and crumbly cheese made on production lines appeared, which was also sold as “Lancashire”. According to the specification, the cheese has been made for generations only in the Fylde, North Preston and Garstang areas, and the knowledge is passed on, closely following the teachings of Joseph Gornall.